Sunrise over Mt Gabriel

Up bright and early this morning. The air was crisp and cold and the view clear. I was waylaid on my way in to work by the sunrise - I stopped to watch the sun just appearing over Mt Gabriel - the highest mountain on the Mizen Peninsula. The little nippley things on the top are aircraft tracking devices, tracking all flights across the Atlantic. I was nearly late but thought I had a good excuse - nearly as good as the time I was seriously late due to having had to stop and watch the dolphins.

A hectic day in school - the Christmas play practice is in full swing and the children are already giddy. The bird table is now jam-packed, the latest to arrive were two coal tits.

Last night's film was excellent - A Royal Affair. Set in late 18C Denmark it told the true story of an English princess sent over to marry a mad Danish king. A man of the Enlightenment was appointed as his doctor. The king fell in love with him but so did the queen. He loved them both and through the king introduced his radical ideas - until it all went horribly wrong. Beautifully filmed, and sumptuously designed it put a very human face on a turbulent political era.